1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an image editing method and apparatus for editing an image such as a photograph, video image, or the like and to a storage medium which is used in the image editing method and apparatus.
The invention also relates to a technique for editing an image having depth.
The invention further relates to a technique for handling depth information.
The invention further relates to a technique for synthesizing a plurality of data.
2. Related Background Art
In recent years, an image editing apparatus for editing or modifying image data derived from an image input apparatus such as a digital camera or the like has been put to practical use. Hitherto, such an image editing apparatus has been used in the printing industry or the like in order to perform a cut-out of a human object including in read image data, an insertion of another image, or the like.
Such a conventional image editing apparatus comprises an image data reader 1300, an insert image reader 1301, an image processor 1302, a display 1303, an insert point designator 1304, and an image inserter 1305 as shown in, for example, FIG. 13.
The image data reader 1300 reads image data obtained by the image input apparatus such as a digital camera or the like and sends the image data to the image processor 1302. The image processor 1302 processes the image data so that the data sent from the image data reader 1300 can be displayed and transmits the processed data to the display 1303 or the like. The display 1303 displays the image data sent from the image processor 1302. The insert image reader 1301 subsequently reads an image to be inserted. Further, a position (or point) where the image is inserted is determined by the insert point designator 1304 comprising a pointing device such as a mouse or the like and is sent to the image inserter 1305. The image inserter 1305 sends the image inserted at the image insert point designated by the insert point designator 1304 to the image processor 1302. The result is displayed by the display 1303.
The above conventional apparatus, however, has a problem such that in case of performing an edition such as an insertion of an image, many trial and error operations have to be repeated and the operation becomes complicated and is executed at multistages. There is also a problem such that it is very difficult to insert an image into an image whose boundary is obscure.